Michael Andersen
Michael Andersen is Director, Cities and Towns with Sightline Institute. Since 2006, he has been writing about ways better municipal policy can help break poverty cycles, with a focus on housing and transportation.
Michael’s work before joining Sightline in 2018 included reporting and editing for print and web in Longview and Vancouver, Washington, and Portland, Oregon. He lives in Portland with a beautiful woman, a kid, and a cat. They park their car in the street.
Find his latest research here, email him at michael@sightline.org , and follow him on Twitter, Bluesky, or LinkedIn.
Michael’s work before joining Sightline in 2018 included reporting and editing for print and web in Longview and Vancouver, Washington, and Portland, Oregon. He lives in Portland with a beautiful woman, a kid, and a cat. They park their car in the street.
Find his latest research here, email him at michael@sightline.org , and follow him on Twitter, Bluesky, or LinkedIn.
Michael Andersen
Michael Andersen
Oregon’s New Path to Inclusionary Housing: Fully Funded and Flexible
An environmental justice champion led the push to end counterproductive, unfunded mandates.
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Video: Fixing North America’s Big Elevator Problem
Our bans on smaller elevators block accessible homes, and our insistence on unique standards drives up prices.
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New Oregon Rules Will Re-Legalize Neighborhood Apartments
Over time, the state zoning standards make space for tens of thousands more homes in Oregon cities.
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Portland’s Inclusionary Zoning Program Is Finally Performing, New Data Suggests
Because for the first time, the city fully funded it.
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Oregon Decides It Was a Mistake to Let Cities Ban Homes
Two new bipartisan laws suggest that for Oregonians to afford to live where and how they want, state-level zoning works better.
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Oregon’s Zoning Reforms Are Working—But They Need Some Upgrades
Six years after a monumental rezone, Gov. Kotek's HB 2138 will fill the gaps to more fully legalize starter homes.
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In Race after Race, People Keep Electing Pro-Housing Politicians
Contrary to some misconceptions, most voters seem to understand that housing is good.
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Five Reasons Four-Story Apartment Buildings Are Good
Especially in Oregon and the rest of the Pacific Northwest.
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Audit Stretches to Find Trouble in Portland’s Affordability Mandate
Should people who qualify for subsidized housing get to have home offices? And other odd questions.
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The Missing Piece of Oregon’s Housing Package: Legalizing Apartments
Gov. Kotek’s SB 1537 will do several useful things, but no longer directly lifts any local bans on apartment buildings. What happened?
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Now Fully Funded, Portland’s Affordability Mandate Should Be a Model
Underfunded inclusionary zoning fails, but fully funded programs can be a boost to below-market housing and a fiscal bargain.
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A Housing Agenda for Oregon: More Homes without Higher Prices
The usual way to get more homes built is wait for prices go up. But there is another way.
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